After 41 years of history, tears, laughter, birth, death, anger, happiness, marriage, divorce, thriving, failing and surviving, All My Children finally came to a close today. It was great to see most of the characters I love back on the canvas one last time, sharing in all of the happiness and good news. Stuart's alive, Frankie found out he and Randi may be gaining a new addition to their family, Brot & Natalia announced their engagement, Angie's sight was restored, Joe & Ruth moved back to Pine Valley as did Adam & Brooke, Jamie came back to town for a visit, Chandler Enterprises and the Chandler home were saved, Adam asked Brooke to marry him, Dixie & Tad are getting married (again) and we can all go home happy, right?
Wrong. Two--no, scratch that--three members of PV society were very unhappy at the Pine Valley Rebirth/Sendoff celebration. The most notable one was JR, who to date has lost everything in his life. I felt rotten for him. When I heard that Alexa Havins was reprising her role as Babe, I was sure that she'd be one of Orpheus' shining stars and she could retrieve her family, save JR from the brink and they could ride off in the sunset together. How let down I was to realize that not only was she on my screen for no more than 30 minutes, her entire purpose was to tell JR that she was indeed still dead. Honestly, I think that pushed JR over the edge more than anything else; in recent days his fleeting hope that Babe was one of the ones David had saved was keeping him going. With confirmation from the subject in question, he knew all hope of getting the love of his life back was gone. Marissa already has his son (btw it really grinds my gears that she now says she's his mother -_-), he won't listen to Tad or Dixie (who he previously wanted to make proud), can't stand the sight of Adam after all the rejection Adam's handed down to him, the man's really been reduced to nothing but a picture on a mantel, the town's scum. How far the mighty fall. JR has always battled his demons, but this time, especially with the confirmation that Babe was not an Orpheus patient as the icing on the cake, he gave into those demons and spent much of the final episode either brooding at the airport between confrontations or lurking in the Chandler tunnels with that gun, a bottle in his hand and cynicism dripping from his words.
JR has been handed a life of hell, much of it a precursor to the hell he put himself through later. I thought if anyone could have used the good news, it would have been him. But it added to the drama that he didn't receive it, or his happy ending, and finally unraveled. At first I thought he would have busted out from the tunnels and made a dramatic entrance, a la Annie when she stabbed Erica a couple years ago. Later in the episode it was seen that he intended to shoot someone in attendance that night, which was practically the entire town. The camera shots from that angle went to Tad, Dixie, Marissa, Bianca, Erica & Jack, but more times than not landed on Adam. When he returned to town this week, JR was furious with him, but that anger skyrocketed when instead of continuing to try to help him, Adam tossed him to the wolves, saying that being on his own would be good for him. At that point, JR gave up and not even Babe's ghost was able to help him through. It was sad to watch. And in true AMC, cliffhangers' fashion, that gunshot was the final sound we heard from Pine Valley. Who he shot, we do not know and probably will not if the Prospect Park-produced AMC doesn't get off the ground.
The other notable unhappy PV resident was Erica, who was finally left high and dry by Jackson. Didn't see that coming, huh? If ANY resident in town was going to get their happy ending, most would bet 9/10 that it would be Ms. Kane herself. Wrong again. Erica, the eternal dreamer, chose yet another stage in her career over her love and life with Jack and he finally had enough. I always found Jack to be so debonair, so handsome and sophisticated, and I loved his last line. "Frankly, Erica, I really don't give a damn what you need." After being Erica's lapdog, the one to always run after her when she'd made another misstep or when her pride was getting in the way of her feelings, for 24 years (as long as I've been alive), Jack reached his breaking point. Opal warned her time and time again as did both of her daughters, but the premise of living out the dream of turning her life into a movie and standing at the corner of Hollywood and Vine instead of Main St. and Pine, was too much for Erica and she put her plans with Jack on the backburner again, expecting him to just be quiet and deal with it as he'd always done. He wasn't. He realized she continued to stall because underneath it she didn't want to be married to him, that her career was still more important than their love, and seemed relieved when she finally admitted it. She begged and pleaded, but it was the same selfish rhetoric Erica has become infamous for. There was no consideration for Jack's aspirations and goals; she just assumed her goals were their goals when in fact they weren't. They were only shared goals because he loved her and wanted her to be happy. The problem was that he was no longer happy with the arrangement and was tired of putting what he wanted behind everything Erica wanted. For the past 41 years, all Erica Kane has thought of was herself and the final episode was no different. Sure, she loved Jack as much as she could, but look at how quickly she hopped on that plane after she got it in her head that Mike Roy was still alive. Jack stood by her through all of her crazy ideas, all of her life's changes, even married and divorced her throughout the 24 years they shared but still never got what he wanted, which was just to be first in Erica's life. I can't blame Jack for finally having had enough. But right up until the end, Erica was determined not to lose her love and her final words were to Opal, when Opal told her she lost out and couldn't retrieve it this time. With the dogged determination Erica has become known for, she said, "Watch me," and stormed out after Jack.
She stormed out, the shot rang out, and in Soprano fashion, the screen faded to black.
I was so angry over the cliffhanger that I couldn't even cry when I realized my show had finally come to an end. Besides that, I'd spent the past 54 minutes crying off and on anyway. lol I can't say that the ending was terrible; I think I understand the angle the writers were coming from. Do something unexpected, have an unexpected ending, especially if this indeed is not the true ending to the show. Make the viewers come back for more, make them eager to see who was shot in those final seconds when the show returns. However, judging by some viewers' posts on media websites about the final episode, that ending may have lost more viewers rather than gained them. It was seen by some as a disrespectful move on AMC and ABC's parts, because they wanted a traditional, happy ending soap that tied everything together and allowed the viewers to give the characters a proper final sendoff. This ending I'll admit left more questions than answers, which again might have been the writers' angle, kind of closing the ABC door and opening the Prospect Park one. I don't agree with it myself, but I'm still undecided as to whether I'll go to the web version, partly because I don't know that I'll remember lol, but if I do I'd like to see them pick up where ABC left off. I wonder how that'll work since Jacob Young already committed himself to B&B and its unlikely many of the veterans will return. We'll see.
Tad's speech, the last long bit of monologue that he or the show would have, broke me down and it got even worse as I saw various castmembers either holding back emotion or wiping tears. Regardless that the party was used as a "rebirth" of Pine Valley, it hung over me like a cloud, not to mention it was rather obvious that this was really the end and alot of Tad's speech were feelings Michael Knight agreed with as well. (If he didn't agree and there was no personal stock in there then he's just amazing. lol) I don't think the writers could have picked a better person to close the show with. As the camera panned to show the cast during the speech, I couldn't help but cry as it finally hit me that this show I came quickly to love, with this cast of people I adored and not just for the characters I loved (and despised), truly and honestly was coming to an end. It hit even further when just after the replay of AMC went off on SoapNet, they showed a commercial for Brothers and Sisters, debuting on Monday in AMC's old replay timeslot. It was as if AMC was being wiped completely off the slate and relegated to an old box in a dusty closet.
I'll admit that I left Pine Valley over a year ago because I was unhappy with the plotlines, but I don't think this should have been the end. There were still so many avenues to explore, so many more dishes to delve into (I promise this isn't a plug for AMC's replacement The Chew. lol) and the story itself just looked so rushed and unfinished. This was a premature ending, if you ask me, and for me there were so many holes in the story that those things stood out to me more as the hour came to a close. Regardless of that, an era truly ended today. Many a career was started here, and many will be closing their careers here as well. I would like to thank the cast, crew, producers, writers, cameramen, all of the employees who helped make AMC what it was over the 5 years I was a fan for providing me with something to watch. Thank you for showing me more than just love in the afternoon and hanging on with confidence after the slow death of soaps began. This show was as much a part of my day as a meal, the characters played a part of my life like old friends whose updates I read like Facebook posts on my news feed. Every time a soap has reached the end of its run, I feel a little emptier when I think about the future of television, because with the death of each soap the evidence that times are changing, another phase is beginning and with that evolution the death of something has to occur in order to free up the space. I'm just sad that its soap operas that have to die in order to make way for the rotten replacements each of them have gotten. I find it so hard to believe that its ridiculous game show remakes, even more talk shows and more reality trash that people want instead of quality, hour-long shows that have been around longer than half their fanbase. These shows are rooted in history, they entertain, they grow as we grow. And the producers of these networks feel we'd rather see another reboot of Let's Make a Deal or The Chew instead? Ok just for a second, I'll be a turncoat and admit that if The Chew wasn't taking the place of my show, I'd probably watch it. But seeing that it is, I can't do it. Yet. lol
In summary, AMC made sure to go out with a watercooler ending and left me not only frustrated, but realizing to never expect anything, never to rely on expecting anything. We as fans expected a hunky-dory, Guiding Light style ending. But at the same time, especially with the possibility of the show living on, there was drama in Pine Valley right up until the end, which culminated in the revival of Mr. Rubber Tree Plant himself, Stuart Chandler, there was no way the show could end peacefully. The show chose to make their finale a celebration of life and what it has to offer, good and bad, the bad being behind and the good being on the horizon for everyone's futures. Today's finale focused on life, new adventures, the beginning of new chapters, and the celebration of the new that the town was getting ready to encounter. Instead of "dying" today, Pine Valley was reborn.
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Wrong. Two--no, scratch that--three members of PV society were very unhappy at the Pine Valley Rebirth/Sendoff celebration. The most notable one was JR, who to date has lost everything in his life. I felt rotten for him. When I heard that Alexa Havins was reprising her role as Babe, I was sure that she'd be one of Orpheus' shining stars and she could retrieve her family, save JR from the brink and they could ride off in the sunset together. How let down I was to realize that not only was she on my screen for no more than 30 minutes, her entire purpose was to tell JR that she was indeed still dead. Honestly, I think that pushed JR over the edge more than anything else; in recent days his fleeting hope that Babe was one of the ones David had saved was keeping him going. With confirmation from the subject in question, he knew all hope of getting the love of his life back was gone. Marissa already has his son (btw it really grinds my gears that she now says she's his mother -_-), he won't listen to Tad or Dixie (who he previously wanted to make proud), can't stand the sight of Adam after all the rejection Adam's handed down to him, the man's really been reduced to nothing but a picture on a mantel, the town's scum. How far the mighty fall. JR has always battled his demons, but this time, especially with the confirmation that Babe was not an Orpheus patient as the icing on the cake, he gave into those demons and spent much of the final episode either brooding at the airport between confrontations or lurking in the Chandler tunnels with that gun, a bottle in his hand and cynicism dripping from his words.
JR has been handed a life of hell, much of it a precursor to the hell he put himself through later. I thought if anyone could have used the good news, it would have been him. But it added to the drama that he didn't receive it, or his happy ending, and finally unraveled. At first I thought he would have busted out from the tunnels and made a dramatic entrance, a la Annie when she stabbed Erica a couple years ago. Later in the episode it was seen that he intended to shoot someone in attendance that night, which was practically the entire town. The camera shots from that angle went to Tad, Dixie, Marissa, Bianca, Erica & Jack, but more times than not landed on Adam. When he returned to town this week, JR was furious with him, but that anger skyrocketed when instead of continuing to try to help him, Adam tossed him to the wolves, saying that being on his own would be good for him. At that point, JR gave up and not even Babe's ghost was able to help him through. It was sad to watch. And in true AMC, cliffhangers' fashion, that gunshot was the final sound we heard from Pine Valley. Who he shot, we do not know and probably will not if the Prospect Park-produced AMC doesn't get off the ground.
The other notable unhappy PV resident was Erica, who was finally left high and dry by Jackson. Didn't see that coming, huh? If ANY resident in town was going to get their happy ending, most would bet 9/10 that it would be Ms. Kane herself. Wrong again. Erica, the eternal dreamer, chose yet another stage in her career over her love and life with Jack and he finally had enough. I always found Jack to be so debonair, so handsome and sophisticated, and I loved his last line. "Frankly, Erica, I really don't give a damn what you need." After being Erica's lapdog, the one to always run after her when she'd made another misstep or when her pride was getting in the way of her feelings, for 24 years (as long as I've been alive), Jack reached his breaking point. Opal warned her time and time again as did both of her daughters, but the premise of living out the dream of turning her life into a movie and standing at the corner of Hollywood and Vine instead of Main St. and Pine, was too much for Erica and she put her plans with Jack on the backburner again, expecting him to just be quiet and deal with it as he'd always done. He wasn't. He realized she continued to stall because underneath it she didn't want to be married to him, that her career was still more important than their love, and seemed relieved when she finally admitted it. She begged and pleaded, but it was the same selfish rhetoric Erica has become infamous for. There was no consideration for Jack's aspirations and goals; she just assumed her goals were their goals when in fact they weren't. They were only shared goals because he loved her and wanted her to be happy. The problem was that he was no longer happy with the arrangement and was tired of putting what he wanted behind everything Erica wanted. For the past 41 years, all Erica Kane has thought of was herself and the final episode was no different. Sure, she loved Jack as much as she could, but look at how quickly she hopped on that plane after she got it in her head that Mike Roy was still alive. Jack stood by her through all of her crazy ideas, all of her life's changes, even married and divorced her throughout the 24 years they shared but still never got what he wanted, which was just to be first in Erica's life. I can't blame Jack for finally having had enough. But right up until the end, Erica was determined not to lose her love and her final words were to Opal, when Opal told her she lost out and couldn't retrieve it this time. With the dogged determination Erica has become known for, she said, "Watch me," and stormed out after Jack.
She stormed out, the shot rang out, and in Soprano fashion, the screen faded to black.
I was so angry over the cliffhanger that I couldn't even cry when I realized my show had finally come to an end. Besides that, I'd spent the past 54 minutes crying off and on anyway. lol I can't say that the ending was terrible; I think I understand the angle the writers were coming from. Do something unexpected, have an unexpected ending, especially if this indeed is not the true ending to the show. Make the viewers come back for more, make them eager to see who was shot in those final seconds when the show returns. However, judging by some viewers' posts on media websites about the final episode, that ending may have lost more viewers rather than gained them. It was seen by some as a disrespectful move on AMC and ABC's parts, because they wanted a traditional, happy ending soap that tied everything together and allowed the viewers to give the characters a proper final sendoff. This ending I'll admit left more questions than answers, which again might have been the writers' angle, kind of closing the ABC door and opening the Prospect Park one. I don't agree with it myself, but I'm still undecided as to whether I'll go to the web version, partly because I don't know that I'll remember lol, but if I do I'd like to see them pick up where ABC left off. I wonder how that'll work since Jacob Young already committed himself to B&B and its unlikely many of the veterans will return. We'll see.
Tad's speech, the last long bit of monologue that he or the show would have, broke me down and it got even worse as I saw various castmembers either holding back emotion or wiping tears. Regardless that the party was used as a "rebirth" of Pine Valley, it hung over me like a cloud, not to mention it was rather obvious that this was really the end and alot of Tad's speech were feelings Michael Knight agreed with as well. (If he didn't agree and there was no personal stock in there then he's just amazing. lol) I don't think the writers could have picked a better person to close the show with. As the camera panned to show the cast during the speech, I couldn't help but cry as it finally hit me that this show I came quickly to love, with this cast of people I adored and not just for the characters I loved (and despised), truly and honestly was coming to an end. It hit even further when just after the replay of AMC went off on SoapNet, they showed a commercial for Brothers and Sisters, debuting on Monday in AMC's old replay timeslot. It was as if AMC was being wiped completely off the slate and relegated to an old box in a dusty closet.
I'll admit that I left Pine Valley over a year ago because I was unhappy with the plotlines, but I don't think this should have been the end. There were still so many avenues to explore, so many more dishes to delve into (I promise this isn't a plug for AMC's replacement The Chew. lol) and the story itself just looked so rushed and unfinished. This was a premature ending, if you ask me, and for me there were so many holes in the story that those things stood out to me more as the hour came to a close. Regardless of that, an era truly ended today. Many a career was started here, and many will be closing their careers here as well. I would like to thank the cast, crew, producers, writers, cameramen, all of the employees who helped make AMC what it was over the 5 years I was a fan for providing me with something to watch. Thank you for showing me more than just love in the afternoon and hanging on with confidence after the slow death of soaps began. This show was as much a part of my day as a meal, the characters played a part of my life like old friends whose updates I read like Facebook posts on my news feed. Every time a soap has reached the end of its run, I feel a little emptier when I think about the future of television, because with the death of each soap the evidence that times are changing, another phase is beginning and with that evolution the death of something has to occur in order to free up the space. I'm just sad that its soap operas that have to die in order to make way for the rotten replacements each of them have gotten. I find it so hard to believe that its ridiculous game show remakes, even more talk shows and more reality trash that people want instead of quality, hour-long shows that have been around longer than half their fanbase. These shows are rooted in history, they entertain, they grow as we grow. And the producers of these networks feel we'd rather see another reboot of Let's Make a Deal or The Chew instead? Ok just for a second, I'll be a turncoat and admit that if The Chew wasn't taking the place of my show, I'd probably watch it. But seeing that it is, I can't do it. Yet. lol
In summary, AMC made sure to go out with a watercooler ending and left me not only frustrated, but realizing to never expect anything, never to rely on expecting anything. We as fans expected a hunky-dory, Guiding Light style ending. But at the same time, especially with the possibility of the show living on, there was drama in Pine Valley right up until the end, which culminated in the revival of Mr. Rubber Tree Plant himself, Stuart Chandler, there was no way the show could end peacefully. The show chose to make their finale a celebration of life and what it has to offer, good and bad, the bad being behind and the good being on the horizon for everyone's futures. Today's finale focused on life, new adventures, the beginning of new chapters, and the celebration of the new that the town was getting ready to encounter. Instead of "dying" today, Pine Valley was reborn.
